Saigon rains render car drivers miserable

It was raining cats and dogs while I was still at work the other day. One of my colleagues decided to leave his car at the company and waited for the rain to lighten up before booking a motorbike taxi ride.

"The road back to my house will surely get flooded, and the water might get into the car," he said.

He had once been caught in such a situation. His car got stuck on a flooded road during a heavy downpour in Saigon, and he could only sit there, helpless. He said he even cried.

Many people see a car as a valuable asset, providing protection from both rain and shine. However, this might not hold true during the heavy rains in Vietnam's cities, where rain and flooding have become a common combo.

It's a problem that urban planners in Ho Chi Minh City, as well as Hanoi and Da Nang, need to address so their residents do not have to worry about protecting their vehicles, whether cars or motorbikes, every rainy season.